Insights for Healthy Models of Reaching Young Adults Oklahoma

1. Insights for Healthy Models of Reaching Young Adults Oklahoma

2. Study Overview • Based on the desire to reach a new generation with the gospel BGCO commissioned LifeWay Research to examine a cross-section of churches in Oklahoma to obtain insights into key principles for healthy models of reaching young adults

3. Methodology • LifeWay Research and BGCO sought to identify churches with exemplary young adult ministries • SBC churches were identified based on young adult baptisms and participation data and referrals • Non-SBC churches were identified by referral

4. Methodology • Other selection criteria: • Minimum of 2 churches located in metro areas • Minimum of 2 churches located in rural areas or small towns • Maximum of 4 mega churches • 79 interviews were conducted with staff members, lay leaders, and young adults of 8 Southern Baptist and 9 Non-Southern Baptist churches across Oklahoma

5. Methodology • Staff member most responsible for young adult ministry was interviewed • Staff member was also asked to supply two leaders and two young adults from their ministry to be interviewed

6. Church Vision& Purpose

7. Establish a clear purpose and mission for young adult ministry Chisholm Heights pastor Dave Bryan took the church through a process to refine the purpose and vision of the entire church. This led to renewed initiatives for reaching young adult couples

8. Integrate your young adult ministry with the identity, values and expression of your church • “Being in a college town, I see so many college ministries that are . . . not under the banner of a church. But we are under the authority of Journey Church, which creates a lot of buzz because we have students that’ll come on Sunday who have never been to our Tuesday night experience. And they’ll see that our church is young and focused.” -Tim Mannon, Journey Church

9. Be willing to try new things as you look for more effective methods • LifeChurch.tv attributes their ability to stay relevant to a willingness to try new things and a willingness to fail. “That kind of innovation-type approach involves transparency ...meaning we are willing to say we made a mistake. This is a characteristic that resonates with the younger culture.” -Bobby Gruenewald,LifeChurch.tv

10. Use the resources God has given you • Emmanuel Church created Refuge, a new young adult service, which meets in the multi-purpose area of the church on Sunday mornings. Although set-up and tear-down is required every week because of the multiple uses of this area, the leaders view it as a stewardship opportunity and are thankful the space was available.

11. Be bold enough to make the necessary changes in order to effectively reach young adults Church at Battlecreek purged the words “singles ministry” from everything they do. Most of their young adults are single and they do address topics like relationships and sex outside of marriage. “They want to be identified for who they are, not their marital status.” Chris Colvin, Church at Battlecreek

12. Building Community &Authentic Relationships

13. Consistently provide a place and opportunities for young adults to build relationships with others in the church • Emmanuel Church hosts a monthly Friends Night. This Sunday evening event is promoted to small groups and Sunday School classes. They are encouraged to gather together and have fun. The church provides childcare for those who need it.

14. Intentionally cross-pollinate relationships from multiple generations • “The church members really incorporate all of us into the service and into the church every weekend. This gives the young adults ownership of what is taking place within the church walls and places within them the desire to continue to serve.” • Young adult, Northview Community Church

15. Ensure your church’s physical environment includes places that are conducive to building relationships • At First Missionary Baptist Church, the welcome area received a makeover designed to create an inviting and casual atmosphere for individuals as they arrived for Fusion worship. The leaders of Fusion point to the coffee bar as an invaluable and strategic addition to their ministry.

16. Small Groups

17. Offer a diverse menu of small groups with a diverse time schedule, meeting in multiple venues • At Emmanuel Baptist Church, an array of small groups—Life Groups for single young adults and Community groups for young marrieds—meet every night of the week.

18. Create an inviting environment in your small groups that also challenges participants to serve—both will appeal to the unchurched. • “We find that a young adult just coming in off the street is more apt to come to a home group than to a worship service. We encourage home groups to do mission projects, outreach, and other ministries.” • Jamie Austin, Lawton First Assembly of God

19. Establish goals for each small group • “We have three goals for our small groups: 1) a place to belong2) a place to change3) a place to reachWe place emphasis on these 3 keys of belonging, changing and reaching. In order to have a healthy life group, all 3 of these principles must be used.” • Kevin Choate, Emmanuel Church

20. Intentionally make small groups a safe and secure environment • “Young adults will begin to discuss their lives and the Bible study if they feel safe and secure in their environment. If they have a problem, they know they can come to that group for help. Whether the need is physical or spiritual, they know the group will meet the need. The group continues to call and talk to one another after the class ends. • Mike Gentry, a volunteer at Church of The Servant

21. Give young adults a sense of ownership of their small groups • “If someone wants to start a home group, there are materials and curriculum available from the church. They pick the material and the night, and host a home group for whatever age group they choose.” • Brent Jenkins, Eagle Heights Church

22. Missions

23. Meet young adults’ expectations to serve • “Young adults have a higher awareness than a lot of other age groups of what it means to be missional. They want to know when they give money to the church where it is going and what it is doing. We want to see our money and our time spent helping and reaching out.” • Joey Carpenter, First Missionary Baptist Church

24. Strategically include missions as a core expectation of small groups • Bridgeway Church has organized their house churches based on a missional focus rather than age or social class. Each house church targets a neighborhood they can help or a network of single moms. “One of the most effective things I have seen has been the equipping and sending out of people to be missional in their own lives and communities.” • Zac Bottomly, Bridgeway Church

25. Present with passion service activities and mission projects • Service activities at the Church at Battlecreek see a remarkable involvement from young adults, due to the church staff's passion as they introduce missional opportunities.

26. Provide opportunities for young adults to serve with multiple generations of church members • FBC of Madill has an ongoing local ministry that adopts four or five homes in the community to paint, roof, install siding, and do other maintenance projects. These home makeovers are great opportunities for multiple generations within the church to engage in missions, as well as to develop cross-generational relationships.

27. Worship

28. Create an environment that celebrates the preferences and style of the generation you are seeking to reach • The Refuge worship service is “full of energy…the lights are dimmed and there are strobe lights and the music is really, really loud and people want to dance. But at the same time the entire service is focused on God.” • Amy Zimmerman, Emmanuel

29. Don’t let the experience of worship obscure the One who is being worshiped • “We are very Jesus-centric in our preaching. If we finish writing a sermon and it doesn’t help people meet Jesus, then we have read the text wrong. We tear it up and burn it and start all over again and repent.” • Ryan Abernathy, Journey Fellowship

30. Make the teaching relevant to your audience • Young adults who attend the Thursday night service at First Assembly of God in Lawton are described as “…a pool of shallow and deep Christians and non-Christians. Therefore, the speaker must present a message that is relevant and applicable to people in all stages of life. We are so careful not to use what we call Christianese, or Christian lingo, at all.”

31. Consider specific worship services for young adults • At Asbury Church, the service most young adults attend is called Venue 6-8, which takes place in a new youth building with an 850-seat auditorium. The senior pastor preaches to the church via simulcast for this service.

32. Outreach

33. Use relationships to spur outreach • The People’s Church offers monthly relational events or Connect Groups. They serve to bridge the gap for young adults from the worship service to small groups. People’s Church’s four identical Sunday morning services are well attended by young adults. Connect groups provide opportunities to build relationships that help them get plugged into community groups.

34. Encourage leaders to build relationships with young adults • “We need to figure out better ways of attracting young people without having to attract them. Mainly that would come through relationships instead of ‘Here’s the big show.’…It starts with leaders and the relationships they have and how we can build those with young people that don’t know Jesus yet.” • Zac Bottomly, Bridgeway Church

35. Train your young adults to reach others • “Most of the new young adults coming to Church of the Servant are coming because young adults involved in the ministry have invited them to come. The young adult members are going to be more effective than any of the older adults when inviting young adults to the church.” • Mike Gentry, Church of the Servant

36. Think AUTHENTIC, SIMPLE, AND PRACTICAL • “We have found that free food is a major draw for students. Nearly every event involves food of some kind.” • Jamie Austin, Lawton First Assembly

37. Think strategically by considering the lifestyle patterns of young adults • “We go where people are.” This includes having the men’s small group meet in places where young adults are found such as certain restaurants. • Ryan Abernathy, The Journey Fellowship

38. Encourage consistency in attendance • “If we could increase the frequency at which people connected with the church, we could give them reasons to come this weekend and reasons to come next weekend, and that process led to a higher degree of engagement overall and the more likely they are to invite other people.” • Bobby Gruenewald, LifeChurch.tv

39. Technology

40. Take advantage of technology for communication • Lawton First Assembly of God relies heavily upon e-mail, phone calls, text-messages, Facebook, video, and podcasts for communicating with young adults. While relationships start in person technology keeps people connected: • Soldiers to receive podcasts of services when overseas, • Volunteers receive email updates • Facebook wall posts or a text message can ask if a friend will be at Fusion this week

41. Don’t underestimate the power of technology to gain the attention of young adults • Technology is in some ways the backbone of the young adult ministry at Asbury. The sermon is given via simulcast, and digital signs and televisions relay announcements. Wide-screen televisions, high-definition projectors, three plasma monitors, high-definition big screens, lights, video imagery, and more are built into the service to enhance the appeal to young adults.

42. Use technology to enhance the worship experience The People’s Church places a premium on first impression. They utilize large-screen projection, theatrical lighting, and creative video production to aid the mood and emotions of the worship service.

43. Leadership

44. Look first to your own field as you seek to recruit leadership for this ministry • Gerod Grigor was a member of Norman Community Church for several months before coming on staff. He loves being on staff at the church where he was attending. Greg said he doesn’t feel like a “hired hand” because he was already involved and embraces the vision of the church.

45. Cast the vision for young adult ministry passionately • “Our pastor’s vision, specifically, is for the next generation. In general, it would be to lead people to be fully-devoted followers of Christ. More specifically, it is for children and teenagers. He has always had a heart for young people. Our pastor is very involved with us relationally. He is our cheerleader.” • Jamie Austin, Lawton First Assembly of God

46. Tap older adults as leaders who can also mentor • “An incredible foundation has been laid by the older generations in our church. Do not try and avoid this foundation and lay another for a younger generation. There are many treasures to be discovered and used from older generations because they have lived through the same situations that many young adults are experiencing in their current lives.” • Todd Craig, Asbury

47. Discipleship

48. Discussion is a key component for Bible studies with young adults • “I think the most effective time during our small groups are when the young adults are the ones leading the conversation by discussing the lesson and their lives. Young adults share when they know they are in a safe place.” • Mike Gentry, Church of the Servant

49. Provide mentoring programs to disciple and to assimilate newcomers • Lawton First Assembly of God has discovered that “young adults are looking for any opportunity to get together and hang out.” Realizing that, the staff has taken the opportunity to provide fellowship as well as discipleship. Austin said, “We hold church sporting events that bring older men together with our younger men.”

50. Theological Issues